If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Puppy OverWeight?

Ralphie is almost 21 weeks, he weighs 8.4kg, should i be concerned about his weight just yet?? he's always been quite a largeish pup and i've asked the nurse at the vet clinic her opinion and she felt that he was ok but that was a few weeks ago. I've looked at body scoring but dont know whether this really applies to a puppy, i don't want to let him become overweight but also i don't want to underfeed him.

he eats twice a day now, approx 150g of Iams puppy in two meals(the package states to give 230g daily for a dog that will be approx 8kg as an adult but i think anymore and he might just explode!!), he has no snacks or left overs, any treats are low fat or chopped carrots

I have large dogs here who's parents were small and small dogs whose parents were large, they have all been reared the same way on the same feed, I have a small B/T puppy and a large B/T puppy from the SAME litter! Whilst we all try to breed for a dog within the standard genetics being what they are you can never be totally certain of the end results! My stud dog is up to size yet throws very correctly sized pups, when I breed from his daughters I am very conscious (sp?) of this and breed away to dogs known for throwing pups of a correct size too!

Basically what I am trying to say here is that your pups size was "Pre-Programmed" at conception, he will be what his genes intended him to be, some pups grow quickly, others take longer to mature, sounds like yours is an early developer to me!!

Cathryn Cavaliers leave pawprints in your heart and hair on everything else!!RE-LIVE YOUR CHILDHOOD THROUGH YOUR KIDS, THE TOYS ARE SO MUCH BETTER THESE DAYS!!

Aah thank you, i hadn't really thought of it from that perspective, i never met his dad but apparently he and his father are quite big dogs (i still suspect there may be a bernese in there somewhere!!) mum was a nice size too a very pretty blenheim.

As a general rule of thumb you should not be able to see his ribs but should be able to feel them when you put your hands on them, you should also be able to move his flesh over his ribs easily, hope this helps?

Cathryn Cavaliers leave pawprints in your heart and hair on everything else!!RE-LIVE YOUR CHILDHOOD THROUGH YOUR KIDS, THE TOYS ARE SO MUCH BETTER THESE DAYS!!

My Beau was 7 kilograms at 21 week and now aged 15 months he is almost 10 kilograms. He is very lean & long though... just a larger than usual Cavalier.

As Cathryn has mentioned, some dogs are just larger than others & unless you are planning of showing it really doesn't matter. The important thing is that they not be fat and from what you've said he sounds fine.

If you run you fingers very lightly down his side & you can feel his ribs he is not overweight. I can be hard to actually "see" with a long haired breed.